CSM Honors Student Athletes at Awards Banquet, April 22

Athletes, Coaches, Families Celebrate Accomplishments, Records

Sportsmanship, academic achievement and athletic excellence for the 2014-15 season were honored at the College of Southern Marylands athletic awards banquet held at the Greater Waldorf Jaycees Community Center April 22.

Sophomore Taylor Superior of Leonardtown was selected as the Female Athlete of the Year. This is the second season Taylor has been team captain, said CSM Womens Soccer Coach Adam Sanchez. Under her leadership, the program amassed 25 wins in two seasons, made appearances at the NJCAA Region XX Championship as well as the NJCAA National Tournament, and won a MDJUCO Championship.

Sophomore Sean Bucior of Mechanicsville was named the Male Athlete of the Year for the second season in a row. A forward and captain of the mens soccer team, Bucior is a very speedy and determined player who has asserted himself as one of the most dominant strikers CSM has had, said CSM Mens Soccer Coach Derek Dyson.

Recipient of the Student Athlete Scholar of the Year Award was sophomore Laura Shaner of Leonardtown. Her academic goal is excellence, and she does not accept anything less, said Sanchez. Even after an exhausting match 90 minutes away, while most players would succumb to fatigue and sleep on the bus ride home, Laura was consistently found studying zoology, math, anatomy or her other pre-nursing courses.

CSM athletes who received recognition from the Maryland Junior College (MDJUCO) Athletic Conference and Region XX, included:

Baseball

Coached by Jack Cheseldine in his fourth season with assistance from Ryan Kellough, Scott Michael and Aaron Michael, the team finished with an overall record of 6-29.

Our team is very proud of how we played the hand we were dealt this season, said Bjoro, who has been offered baseball scholarships from Barton College, Greensboro College and Marymount University. We kept grinding despite all adversity thrown our way.

The Mens Cross-Country teams inaugural season was coached by Christopher Tuttle and Joshua Trice. Freshman Chris Jones of Waldorf was named to the Mens XC All MDJUCO First Team and finished second in regionals. Jones also earned the CSM Most Valuable Player Award. Freshman Ian Njoroge'Macharia of Waldorf earned the CSM Most Improved Runner Award.

Chris came to us with a very clear goal: to run and run fast, said Tuttle. Every day it was, Coach, what can I do to get better? Coach, should I run more? I could have told Chris to run up a mountain and his response would have been, OK, how many times and how fast? His determination quickly paid off not only for himself, but for the team as well.

Womens Cross-Country

The Womens Cross-Country teams second season was coached by Tuttle and Trice. Its sole runner, sophomore Jackie Clark of La Plata, was named to the Womens XC All MDJUCO First Team and was the Overall Region XX Womens Individual Championship winner. She also earned the CSM Most Valuable Player Award.

From a coaching standpoint, I could not have handpicked a better all-around student athlete to lead the way for this team, said Tuttle. Not only does Jackie achieve academically, but she works in our fitness center and helps promote our programs in the community.

Nick made a big impact on the lacrosse field for us, said Ryan. He was the type of player that could change the momentum of a game and was always an offense threat on the field. Throughout the season, he scored 25 goals and 15 assists.

Despite only having 12 players, the girls played hard in every game, said Arter. Micaela and Helen Kuhn ran the midfield and helped net a lot of goals for our attack. Krysta led our defense, and her voice helped direct where the players needed to be.

The Mens Soccer team, coached by Dyson in his fourth year, finished 10-7. The staff included assistant coach Al Reza in his fifth year as well as assistance from Kyle Toepfer, Ryan Garvin and William Pete Thomas.

Bucior was named to the NJCAA All-American First Team and the NSCAA/Continental Tire Junior College Division 1 Mens All-American Team. Bucior, Albert Granados-Alvarez of Adelphi and Zach Haulkham of West Sussex, England, were named to the Region XX Division 1 First Team All-Region. Bucior and Granados-Alvarez were named to the All MDJUCO First Team. Lee Clark of Newcastle, England, and Jay Porter of Kent, England, were named to the Region XX Division 1 Second Team All-Region. Clark received the CSM Most Valuable Player Award. Haulkham received the CSM Coaches Award.

Zach was a silent leader on the field and displayed the maturity it takes to excel at his position as the central midfielder, said Dyson.

The Womens Soccer team lost in the Region XX Championship Game, ending the season with an overall record of 7-8-3. The team was coached by Adam Sanchez in his sixth season, Tony Galeano in his fourth season and Deja Walker in her first season.

Region XX Division 1 First Team All-Region and All MDJUCO First Team honors went to Colleen Newsome of White Plains and Superior. Superior also earned NJCAA 1st Team All-American Honors. Newsome and Kayla Ruiz of California received the CSM Coaches Award.

Colleen received this honor because of her drive to constantly improve as well as her overall commitment to the program, said Sanchez. She is absolutely exceptional, and her hard work has given her the opportunity to continue playing soccer at Fairmont State University on a scholarship.

Coached by Jim Cleary in his second season with assistance from John Creaturo in his 23rd season, Bill Hitte in his 11th season, and Rebecca Gleason and Jerry Watkins in their first season, the Softball team finished with an overall record of 10-18.

Sophomore Caitlin Gordon of Brandywine was named to the All-Region XX Second Team. Gordon, sophomore Taylor Croson of La Plata, and freshman Alyssa Peregoy of La Plata were named to the All-MD JUCO Second Team.

Taylor did a phenomenal job this year in the outfield and at the plate, said Williams. Her diving catches made a difference in the games and her batting came on strong. Sydney also did well for us defensively in the field, making spectacular catches at the fence to help us keep runs off of the board.

On and off the court, Kelly performed at her maximum level, said Williams. She suffered an injury during the season but continued to play and perform at a level that helped us get to the Region XX Tournament.